Trial of Mass Murderer Goes Uncovered

How does a story about the trial of a mass murderer – someone who is alleged to have killed hundreds – not make it into the mainstream press?

The only logical answer is that media bias is alive and well.

News about the trial of Dr. Kermit Gosnell has been as rare in the mainstream press as calls for an investigation into the Benghazi attack that killed an American ambassador. Running stories about either would be like running stories about ethanol harming the environment or the federal debt increasing poverty – it would be an admission that the liberal state is in a state of disrepair.

For those who only read the mainstream press, Dr. Gosnell has been the go-to guy in the Philadelphia area for anyone who wants a late-term abortion. He is charged with killing seven babies allegedly born alive in his abortion mill, in addition to the death of a 41-year-old mother of three.

While charges were brought based only on the seven babies, he is alleged to have killed hundreds between 1972 and 2011, the years during which his clinic operated. His charges are based on deaths in which adequate records were kept. His MO was called “snipping,” in which he and his staff would cut the spinal cords of babies with scissors.

His clinic was also notorious for its unsanitary conditions and poorly trained staff. But if you need to have a baby killed, where are you going to go?

Compromise Needed

Abortion is, of course, an emotionally charged issue and extremists on both sides have been unbending on the issue. Those who allegedly favor life have killed to make their point. Those who allegedly favor choice have fought to allow partial-birth abortions, arguing that the potential mother has the right to choose death for a child even in the third trimester.

Note to pro-life advocates: Abortion is not going away; if a couple removes an unwanted fetus because the prospective parents are not yet ready to be proper parents, it is a personal and logical choice to do so.

Note to pro-choice advocates: Life begins at some point. Decide where that is.

Legalizing abortion was supposed to end the backroom practices of murderers like Dr. Gosnell. It didn’t. The only way to prevent future Dr. Gosnells is for both sides to compromise, which is unlikely to ever happen.

In the meantime, American media could help advance the debate by covering the issue objectively. That has as much chance of happening as the compromise mentioned in the previous paragraph.